Brook thistle
Barely spiny purple-headed thistle of wet mountain meadows in central Europe; generous nectar in late spring and early summer.
- Nectar
- Good
- Pollen
- Medium
- Flowering
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
- Height
- 0.5-1.2 m
- Life cycle
- Perennial
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Brook thistle is a perennial thistle of damp and wet meadows, springs and stream banks in the Alps, the Carpathians and the northern Balkans. Its long, almost leafless stems bear dark purple heads at the tip, often in groups of two or three; its leaves have soft spines. Like most thistles it has plentiful, easily reached nectar; honey bees, bumblebees and butterflies visit it heavily.
Flowering
It flowers from May to July; in meadows mown early, a second, weaker flowering may follow.
Honey and pollen
No separate honey is produced; it contributes to mountain meadow honeys. Pollen is also collected.
Note for the beekeeper
It does not grow wild in Turkey. It has declined in many places as wet meadows have been drained; for beekeepers in Europe, protecting damp meadows is important for the survival of this plant. Garden cultivars such as Atropurpureum do well in damp bee gardens.